Shanghai Y-10 profile. (Shanghai Aircraft Manufacture Factory, 1980) The aircraft used Pratt & Whitney JT3D-7 turbofan engines, which were spares belonging to CAAC's small fleet of Boeing 707 aircraft. Shanghai had intended to use a Chinese-built WS8 turbofan, but the Pratt & Whitney engine was selected before the WS8 could reach certification. The plane carried 178 in high-density, 149 in economy, or 124 in mixed-class. The flight deck had room for five crewmembers: pilot, co-pilot, flight engineer, navigator, and radio operator.
History
Development work began in August, 1970 for Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC). The plane was intended to serve as a demonstrator and help the Chinese industry obtain experience in large aircraft design and flight testing. The Y-10 development totalled 537.7 million yuan. The Chinese government prided itself on the program, citing a foreign press report that said, "After developing this kind of highly complex technology, one could no longer regard China as a backward country!"
Only two examples were built. The first prototype (01) was used for static testing. A second prototype (02) was used for flight testing. The plane first flew on September 26, 1980. Until its retirement in 1984 it made 130 flights with 170 hours of flying time, and visited Beijing, Harbin, Urumqi, Zhengzhou, Hefei, Guangzhou, Kunming, and Chengdu. It also flew seven times to Lhasa in Tibet.
However by the time the prototype was first flown, debate about its viability surfaced. The Y-10 was based on a design that was already 30 years old. It was rumored that CAAC, which already owned a modest Western fleet, would not purchase the plane. China was beginning to embrace trade with the West, and some saw the isolationist design as an inefficient throwback to Maoism. The program was cancelled in 1983, officially due to cost and market concerns. By 1985 SAMF had been granted production licensing for the McDonnell Douglas MD-80 and shifted all efforts towards this program.
Statistics
- Crew: 9 (5 on flightdeck, 4 flight attendents)
- Engine: Pratt & Whitney JT3D-7 turbofan (19,000 lb st)
Dimensions
- Length: 140 ft 10 in (42.93 m)
- Wingspan: 138 ft 7 in (42.24 m)
- Height: 44 ft 0 in (13.42 m)
- Wheel base: 48 ft 7 in (14.80 m)
- Wheel track: 21 ft 8 in (6.60 m)
- Wing area: 2630 sq ft
- Cargo space: 1272 cu ft
Performance
- Range (30,000 lb cargo): 3,460 nm
- Range (10,000 lb cargo): 4,483 nm
- Cruising speed: Mach 0.82 (605 mph)
- Never-exceed speed: Mach 0.88 / 345 kt
- Maximum cruising speed (200,000 lb): 605 mph at 26,000 ft
- Economical cruising speed (200,000 lb): 570 mph at 36,000 ft
- Approach speed: 147 kt
- Cruise altitude: 35,000 ft
- Service ceiling: 39,300 ft
- Take-off field length: 7,605 ft
- Landing field length: 7,031 ft
Weight
- Empty weight: 127,866 lb
- Max takeoff weight: 242,500 lb
- Max landing weight: 182,980 lb
- Fuel capacity: 112,434 lb
References
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